Bedbugs bite the wallet as well

Aimee Ferguson, wife and mother of three, noticed bite marks on her 2 year-old daughter around the first part of July. “At first I thought it was fleas. I bombed the house but my kids kept getting bites. I figured out that it was bedbugs and bombed again.” After the second bombing, the bedbugs came out of their hiding places in the carpet and furniture and began crawling to the surface.

Although the first thing people think of when dealing with bedbugs is to throw their furniture away, Jason Wheeler of Ace Pest Control disagrees. “Throwing away (infested) furniture is a common misconception,” he said. “People throw away their old stuff and replace it with new. New furniture is untreated and only gives bed bugs a new place to go.”

Wheeler says the most common way for people to get bedbugs is from used furniture. “I can’t stress it enough,” he said. “Do not bring used furniture in to your home. People throw away their infested furniture, and then someone drives down the alley and thinks ‘this is a nice piece of furniture’ and takes it home.”

Before contacting a pest control company, do some homework first. Wheeler says the average price for most companies is around $600 and can be completed in one to three treatments. “Look for a warranty from the company,” he suggests. “If they don’t have a warranty, they may not back their work.”

Wheeler also recommends that when treatment is complete, buy a mattress protector that has a cloth cover instead of vinyl. “Cloth covers are sturdier. It’s too easy to rip the vinyl ones,” he said. He also recommends that box-springs and mattresses stay inside a protector for at least two years.

Since the infestation, Ferguson and her family have been living out of suitcases in another location until the situation is resolved. “I’m paranoid about bringing those bugs back-and-forth. I check everything. I’m not taking any chances.”

Ferguson believes that her problem stemmed from a potential hitchhiking bedbug brought back from an out-of-town trip. She estimates a loss of more than $1600.